Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Gravesend

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,665 in Gravesend, rent and utilities included – about $17,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index
128

Cost of Living Index in Gravesend
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Gravesend Living Index

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Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Gravesend

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,665

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in Gravesend

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Playa del Carmen and in Gravesend actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,665 in Gravesend.

Playa del Carmen $1,204
Gravesend $2,665

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,102 in Playa del Carmen versus $3,723 in Gravesend.

Playa del Carmen $2,102
Gravesend $3,723

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,000 in Playa del Carmen versus $4,781 in Gravesend.

Playa del Carmen $3,000
Gravesend $4,781

Living in Playa del Carmen costs roughly 55% less than in Gravesend, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Playa del Carmen is 11% below, Gravesend is 97% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.86 MX$201

$20.29 £15.22

-46.48%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.21 MX$817

$73.1 £54.8

-39.51%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.76 MX$217

$10.42 £7.82

12.86%

Cappuccino

$3.68 MX$68.0

$4.44 £3.33

-17.12%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.34 MX$24.79

$1.96 £1.47

-31.63%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.82 MX$15.24

$1.30 £0.98

-36.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.06 MX$56.6

$8.05 £6.04

-61.99%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.94 MX$91.2

$6.79 £5.09

-27.25%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.47 MX$27.17

$1.30 £0.97

13.08%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 MX$40.95

$1.30 £0.98

70.77%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.48 MX$27.32

$2.49 £1.87

-40.56%

Eggs

$2.49 MX$45.99

$3.23 £2.42

-22.91%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.52 MX$139

$9.70 £7.28

-22.47%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.96 MX$147

$9.29 £6.97

-14.32%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.57 MX$232

$11.81 £8.86

6.44%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 MX$51.3

$2.35 £1.77

18.30%

Banana (1kg)

$1.43 MX$26.37

$1.31 £0.98

9.16%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.62 MX$48.37

$2.59 £1.94

1.16%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 MX$39.49

$3.44 £2.58

-37.79%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.38

$1.11 £0.83

81.98%

Onion (1kg)

$1.99 MX$36.74

$0.95 £0.72

109.47%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 MX$21.01

$1.29 £0.97

-11.63%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.20 MX$22.18

$0.79 £0.59

51.90%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.26 MX$78.7

$22.36 £16.78

-80.95%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.02 MX$185

$11.23 £8.42

-10.77%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.54 MX$28.41

$2.72 £2.04

-43.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.66 MX$49.17

$4.17 £3.13

-36.21%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.53 MX$9.73

$3.18 £2.39

-83.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.51 MX$508

$73.6 £55.3

-62.64%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.90 MX$90.6

$6.40 £4.80

-23.44%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.43 MX$63.5

$2.67 £2.01

28.46%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.38 MX$99.4

$26.58 £19.94

-79.76%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 MX$26.76

$2.10 £1.58

-30.95%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$21.2K MX$391.0K

$32.4K £24.3K

-34.74%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$23.0K MX$425.3K

$41.1K £30.8K

-43.99%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$85.4 MX$1,577

$336 £252

-74.59%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$23.46 MX$434

$18.20 £13.65

28.90%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.43 MX$525

$33.91 £25.44

-16.16%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$62.2 MX$1,149

$53.7 £40.27

15.87%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.68 MX$530

$14.88 £11.16

92.74%

Cinema Ticket

$5.10 MX$94.3

$13.57 £10.18

-62.42%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$201 MX$3,715

$2,163 £1,623

-90.71%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,947 MX$72.9K

$35.1K £26.3K

-88.76%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.39 MX$820

$90.8 £68.1

-51.12%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.35 MX$764

$26.40 £19.80

56.63%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.7 MX$1,344

$91.7 £68.8

-20.63%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.6 MX$1,656

$129 £96.6

-30.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$979 MX$18.1K

$1,508 £1,131

-35.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$373 MX$6,887

$1,353 £1,015

-72.45%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,681 MX$31.1K

$2,667 £2,001

-36.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,095 MX$20.2K

$2,024 £1,519

-45.90%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,949 MX$73.0K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,137 MX$113.4K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$738 MX$13.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.45

5.04

127.18%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 17, 2026

Last update for Gravesend: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Playa del Carmen

$373 31%

Gravesend

$1.4K 50.8% 263% $980

Groceries & Markets

Playa del Carmen

$258 21.5%

Gravesend

$271 10.2% 5% $13

Eating Out

Playa del Carmen

$200 16.6%

Gravesend

$314 11.8% 56.7% $114

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4%

Gravesend

$388 14.6% 183% $251

Clothing & Footwear

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3%

Gravesend

$152 5.7% 36.1% $40

Sport & Entertainment

Playa del Carmen

$72 6%

Gravesend

$81 3% 11.6% $8.4

Getting Around

Playa del Carmen

$52 4.3%

Gravesend

$106 4% 105% $54

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $979 in Playa del Carmen and $1,508 in Gravesend. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $44.00 in Playa del Carmen vs $73.0 in Gravesend for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $258 vs $271 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🇬🇧 Gravesend

🕒 Local time

12:11 12:11 PM

18:11 6:11 PM

6 h ahead of Playa del Carmen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,923

54,263

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GBP, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

British Pound exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Playa del Carmen Gravesend 8,060 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Playa del Carmen
Gravesend

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Playa del Carmen vs Gravesend: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Playa del Carmen and Gravesend differ by about 121% in total monthly costs ($1,204 vs $2,665 including rent). Playa del Carmen is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $1,806 in Playa del Carmen and $3,997 in Gravesend to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $979 in Playa del Carmen versus $1,508 in Gravesend. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 5% higher in Gravesend. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Playa del Carmen – a meal for two runs $44.00 versus $73.0 in Gravesend. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,665 in Gravesend, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Gravesend. The gap between the two cities makes Playa del Carmen the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Expats usually find Playa del Carmen gentler on the wallet – expenses run 121% less than in Gravesend. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.